Homemade rhubarb gin is so easy to make and such a pleasure to enjoy. It makes the best foodie gift!
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Homemade Liqueurs
I discovered the joys of homemade liqueurs and infusions a few years ago, and have become rather addicted to the whole experience and adventure. The possibilities and permutations are endless. Fruit + alcohol, but which fruit, which alcohol? That’s completely up to you! And the season, naturally. Pink gin, blue gin, green gin, chocolate gin?
Anything homemade is always going to be markedly better, for the simple reason that you can make it your own, and homemade liqueurs are no different.
Different Gin Flavours
So rhubarb in spring and summer, strawberries in summer, blackberries and apples in autumn, you get the idea. Incidentally, along similar lines, I do the same thing with vinegar. Raspberry balsamic vinegar is sweet, sour and so, so enslaving.
Over the last few years, I’ve made sloe gin, damson gin, raspberry gin, blueberry gin and limoncello. And various types of flavoured vodkas, like lemongrass and kaffir lime vodka and this Polish favourite, Krupnik, a Christmas flavoured vodka.
Today’s infusion is Rhubarb Gin, also called pink gin, and something you can get easily on the shelves in supermarkets and off licences. So why make your own? Because homemade is always going to be, well, we covered that right at the start of this post!
There are many, many recipes online on how to make it. Or any other fruit infused gin. However, as far as I’m concerned, there are no hard and fast ratios in making your own infused liqueurs. More fruit, less fruit, it’s a matter of taste. Or vegetable.
Because you know rhubarb is a vegetable, don’t you? With a split personality; it thinks it’s a fruit.
How to Make Rhubarb Gin at Home
All we do is:
- Soak some rhubarb (and ginger, if using) in gin
- Add sugar
- Leave to proof for 4 weeks
- Strain through a fine sieve, with or without muslin/coffee filter (ps: coffee filters take forever!)
Good Quality Gin
Get the best gin you can afford to make your rhubarb gin. That goes for all your homemade infused liqueurs. Cheap gin will give you a cheap tasting result. That doesn’t mean that you have to pay top dollar, do a little research to see what’s good in your price range. Like wine you plan to cook with, get something that you will enjoy drinking on its own and doesn’t taste like rubbish. I’m happy to use a good quality London Dry Gin.
Rhubarb
Be sure to look for healthy stalks, the redder they are, the pinker your gin. however, your rhubarb gin will lose its colour over time, becoming slightly paler.
No Fresh Rhubarb?
Just use the same amount of frozen rhubarb. No need to thaw, infuse the gin with the rhubarb, as it is. In fact, there is an advantage to using frozen fruit (or vegetable, in this case), the skins are softer and easily split once they thaw, allowing better movement of flavours in and out of the fruit.
Ginger
Ginger has a natural affinity with rhubarb, and if you fancy making rhubarb and ginger gin, just add a large, thick stem of ginger. No need to peel, scrub well, slice and add to the bottle. About 200g (14 oz) will be perfect for the recipe here, for a very gingery rhubarb gin!
I’m going to give you 2 recipes, one for the long term, it will take a month to mature. The other, is for those of us who are impatient, and want everything NOW! In this second recipe, we roast the rhubarb to draw out its sweet flavours, and the gin will be ready to drink in 5 days.
How do you drink Rhubarb Gin?
- Straight up is sublime and spectacular!
- On ice is so, so smooth.
- In cocktails – let your imagination run wild!
Rhubarb Gin Cocktails
Pink cocktails are so pretty to look at, have you ever been mesmerised by beautiful pink cocktail pictures? Well I have! And I’m not even that keen on pink! Here are some ideas:
Rhubarb Collins
So easy, click here for the recipe.
Rhubarb Gin Fizz
- 50ml (2 fluid oz) rhubarb gin
- handful ice cubes
- 2-3 strawberries
- top with 7-Up
Rhubarb Gimlet
- 50ml (2 fluid oz) rhubarb gin
- top with lime or lemon cordial
What to do with gin soaked rhubarb?
Gin soaked rhubarb is out of this world. I go weak at the knees with most alcohol soaked fruits, but gin soaked rhubarb is in a class of its own. What to do with it? You can:
- top ice cream with it – sundaes or layered ice cream made with gin soaked rhubarb are wonderful!
- have it with some mascarpone
- whip some double (thick) cream and have it that way
- make a cool rhubarb crumble with gin soaked rhubarb – bet you didn’t think of that!
Sterilising Jars and Bottles for our Rhubarb Gin
- Turn the oven on to a cool 130˚C/250˚F/Gas Mark ½.
- Wash the jars, bottles and lids in hot soapy water.
- Place the jars, bottles and lids upside down in the oven and leave them to dry, with the door closed for 15 minutes.
- Turn the oven off and leave the jars, bottles and lids in there, bringing them out only when you are ready to fill. Be careful, as they’ll be hot.
Shall we get our aprons on?
If you like the recipe, don’t forget to leave me a comment and that all important, 5-star rating! Thank you!
And if you make the recipe, share it on any platform and tag me @azlinbloor.
Lin xx
More Gin Recipes:
Images from LinsFoodies
Homemade Rhubarb Gin Recipe (with ginger, if you like)
Ingredients
Rhubarb Gin Recipe 1
- 800 g rhubarb stalks
- 1 L good quality gin
- 400 g white sugar
- 200 g fresh ginger (optional)
Roasted Rhubarb Gin
- 400 g rhubarb stalks
- 200 g white sugar
- 1 L gin
Instructions
Rhubarb Gin Recipe 1
- Chop up the rhubarb stalks into 5cm (2in) pieces.800 g rhubarb stalks
- Scrub the ginger with a vegetable scrubber, no need to peel. Slice thinly.200 g fresh ginger
- Place everything into a large, sterilised jar, and give it a good stir. Or as you can see from the image, I placed some of the rhubarb straight into a bottle.1 L good quality gin, 400 g white sugar
- Cover and place in a dark place for 4 weeks. I place mine in a kitchen cupboard. Stir it every other day, or as often as you remember to!
- To drink, strain through a sieve or, if you like a crystal clear pink gin, strain though a double layer of muslin or cheese cloth into a sterilised bottle.
Roasted Rhubarb Gin
- Preheat the oven to 180˚C (350˚F / 160°C Fan).
- Chop up the rhubarb stalks into 5cm (2in) pieces.400 g rhubarb stalks
- Place the rhubarb onto a baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes until soft.
- When done, tip the roasted rhubarb stalk into a large sterilised jar, along with all its juices.
- Add the sugar and gin, and stir to mix.200 g white sugar, 1 L gin
- Cover, and leave in a dark cupboard for 5 days. Stir everyday.
- To drink, strain through a sieve or, if you like a crystal clear pink gin, strain though a double layer of muslin or cheese cloth into a sterilised bottle. The mushy rhubarb is absolutely delicious as dessert with mascarpone cheese or ice cream.
So cool!
That, it is! x
Hi Lin, can I make this with frozen rhubarb? I have so much in the freezer. Do I have to defrost the rhubarb first?
Hi Kev, yes, you can, frozen rhubarb works perfectly. And you don’t have to defrost first.
Thank you, Azlin. I’ve just got 2 batches going with some forced rhubarb. One for the long term, and the roasted one for Easter Sunday lunch. can’t wait.
Awesome, that’s what I like to hear! Happy Easter!
I would prefer not to add sugar (purely for calorific content) is it absolutely necessary? Or could you use a sugar substitute?
Hi Dee, I reckon you could skip the sugar entirely if you wanted. It will be a stronger and more tart drink. Also, you most definitely can add stevia to it, you only need a small amount of stevia, as it’s much, much sweeter than sugar. There are 2 cups of sugar here (400g). You will only need 2 teaspoons of stevia, I would use the liquid extract, instead of powder, if you can get it.
That’s great Azlin & thanks for your reply. I’ve never used Stevia before but will see if I can get the liquid extract….can you also advise how many drops of it would be required per litre of gin please?
2 teaspoons of stevia if you like your drinks sweet like I do. If not, 1-1 and a half. The beauty of these infused spirits is that you can always start with a lower amount of sugar/sweetener. Then, halfway through (after 2-3 weeks) or at the end of proofing time (4 weeks), taste and just add more if it’s not sweet enough.
Thank you I’ll give that a go. I can’t get fresh rhubarb at this time of year so I’ve bought 1.5kg of frozen. Should I now….
1) boil it from frozen with 150ml of water as it says on the bag then let it cool & add the gin
2) add the gin to it from frozen
3) just defrost it & then add the gin
Sorry for all the questions….complete novice
Not a problem, Dee. You can add the frozen rhubarb straight to the gin in whatever jar you are using. No need to defrost in any way. I use frozen rhubarb when they are no longer in season here, and that’s what I’ve just done with the strawberry and rhubarb vodka I’m making for Christmas. Frozen strawberries too.
If I use frozen Ruhbarb will I have to cook it first
No you don’t. Don’t even have to defrost it, just use it as it is, straight from the bag.
Please what size jar would I use to make the full amount.
Thank you.
Hi Pam, I tend to use 1.5L (6 cups) – 2L (8 cups) jars. That way, I always have enough space, no matter how much fruit/vegetable I add.
If you are using a 1L bottle of gin, then you want a jar that can hold at least 1.5L (6 cups).
Thank you for your reply in England after Christmas we have forced rhubarb which is the best so will wait for that.
A pleasure. I’m down in Bournemouth, and always get excited when the forced rhubarb starts appearing!
Azlin me thinks we should get out more. lol
Lol!
Hervorragender Beitrag und einen wirklich schönen Blog hast du hier! Ich werde sicherlich öfter mal vorbeischauen! 🙂
Dankeschön!
Klasse! Endlich mal jemand der weiß wovon er redet! Toller Beitrag, Dankeschön! 🙂
Danke! I really appreciate that!
Does roasting it affect the taste. Which would you say was better? Also how much ginger would you add to the roasted version
Hi Kez, I think roasting the rhubarb created a slightly sweeter drink (with the same amount of sugar). It also had a hint of caramel, from the burnt bits off the rhubarb. It was also more aromatic, because of the shorter period, I reckon.
Ginger for the roasted version – half the amount, so 100g (3.5oz). I would also grate the ginger, as it’s a much shorter steeping period, and you want as much surface area of the ginger at work, as you can.
Hi how long can you keep a bottle of home made rhubarb gin for please
Hi Mimi, after straining, it should be perfectly fine up to 2 years. It will mellow slightly in the first couple of months, then settle down.
Cheers, I made this last month, and have just had a taste. It is delicious. I ‘m planning to make the limoncello and vodka next, before all the fruits get expensive. Thank you.
Fab stuff, thanks for letting me know. Please to hear that!